Mathison Museum of Natural History - Prehistoric Edition

[bmathison1972]

A really good model, for sure and the color pattern is striking, if on the simple side. I'd get this one re-painted to give it a much more natural look, like the PNSO Iguanodon. Good to see the innovative departure from standard poses.

Thank you SidB. I like paint on this one, striking but not overblown.

[bmathison1972]

It's been a while since anything came up for the DTB, but here we are:

Species: †Opabinia regalis Walcott, 1912

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Royal Ontario Museum
Series: Animals of the Burgess Shale
Year of Production: 2000
Size/Scale: Figure length 9.7 cm. Body length (excluding proboscis) 7.5 cm for a scale of 1.8:1-1:1.1 (slightly over 1:1 for a large specimen)
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Uncommon
Miscellaneous Notes: This may have been the first figure of this species, preceding the Kaiyodo Dinotales figure by about a year. This is not a bad interpretation given it is 22 years old at the time of this writing. The claws at the end of the proboscis are oriented at a different angle than current concepts, but the number of lateral lobes, tail fan blades, and eyes are all correct. The body appears to be based on a 1975 construction by H. B. Whittington, but with the proper number and arrangement of eyes.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Middle Cambrian of present-day Canada (British Columbia)
Habitat: Marine, benthic
Diet: Presumably soft-bodied marine invertebrates
IUCN Status (at time of posting): N/A [prehistoric]
Miscellaneous Notes: The phylogenetic position of O. regalis is far from resolved. Today it is generally believed to be a stem-arthropod, within Panarthropoda but outside of Euarthropoda, and a sister group to Radiodonta (Anomalocaris and kin).

[bmathison1972]

Species: †Dithyrocaris rolfei Schram and Horner, 1978

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Paleocasts
Series: N/A
Year of Production: 2017
Size/Scale: Body length (excluding appendages) 5.0 cm. Carapace width 3.0 cm for a scale of 2:1
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique (as a sculpt)
Miscellaneous Notes: Paleocasts is a line of prehistoric animals, mainly invertebrates, produced by artist Patrick May and sold on Etsy in the U.S. The figures can usually be purchased finished (as shown here) or unfinished. The species-level identification is my own, as many of Paleocasts' earlier models are based the fauna of the Mazon Creek Fossil Beds.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Carboniferous (late Mississipian to early Pennsylvanian) of present-day northern North America
Habitat: Marine, probably benthic to demersal
Diet: Presumably filter feeder of microorganisms and organic material
IUCN Status (at time of posting): N/A (prehistoric)
Miscellaneous Notes: Dithyrocaris rolfei fossils have been found in the Heath Shale Formation (late Mississippian in Fergus County, Montana) and Mazon Creek Fossil Beds (early Pennsylvanian in Grundy County, Illinois).

[Halichoeres]

When I first got this one, as a lagniappe alongside Tullimonstrum if I recall correctly, I remember being surprised to learn it was an arthropod. I'm not sure what I thought it was, but I was surprised anyhow!

[bmathison1972]

When I first got this one, as a lagniappe alongside Tullimonstrum if I recall correctly, I remember being surprised to learn it was an arthropod. I'm not sure what I thought it was, but I was surprised anyhow!

I believe mine was also a freebie, probably when I bought a set of trilobites, but I can't remember. I had two, this grey one and a cream-colored one. I can't remember what happened to the latter; it might have broke during a move or I may have removed it from my collection during one of my 'spring cleanings'

[bmathison1972]

Species: †Archelon ischyros Wieland, 1896

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Favorite Co. Ltd.
Series: Prehistoric Life Soft Model
Year of Production: 2015
Size/Scale: Body length 14.0 cm for a scale of 1:25
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Uncommon to rare
Miscellaneous Notes: The animal is removable from its base. Favorite also made a larger Vinyl Model version of this species, and several small (tube, gashapon) versions exist by Kaiyodo, Colorata, Eikoh, and others.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Late Cretaceous (Campanian) of present-day western North America in the Western Interior Seaway
Habitat: Marine, benthic to pelagic
Diet: Marine invertebrates
IUCN Status (at time of posting): N/A [prehistoric]
Miscellaneous Notes: Despite morphologic similarities, A. ischyros and kin (Prostegidae) are not in the same clade as modern sea turtles (crown-group Chelonoidea), but the two groups may have split from a common ancestor in the early Cretaceous.

[Halichoeres]

I love this figure. I wish Favorite Co would give Hirokazu Tokugawa more work.

I think you mean "crown-group Chelonoidea?"

[bmathison1972]

I love this figure. I wish Favorite Co would give Hirokazu Tokugawa more work.

I think you mean "crown-group Chelonoidea?"

that makes more sense, but the paper I references did say 'crown stem' :-)

[Halichoeres]

Weird, I wonder what they mean by that.

[bmathison1972]

Weird, I wonder what they mean by that.

maybe a typo or a translation snafu (can't remember). Oh well, I corrected my post

[bmathison1972]

Species: †Anomalocaris canadensis Whiteaves, 1892

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Kaiyodo
Series: Great Leap Forward
Year of Production: 2015
Size/Scale: Body length (exclusive of appendages) 5.5 cm for a scale of 1:7
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Uncommon
Miscellaneous Notes: This is the second time we've seen A. canadensis in the Museum. The animal is removable from its base. This figure is structurally accurate for the time it was made, hence it lacks the frontal head sclerite and is missing the three smaller lateral flaps up near the 'neck' region. The number of larger flaps (13) appears to be correct, although as the flaps get smaller towards the tail, it becomes difficult to know how many there were in life.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Early to mid-Cambrian of present-day Canada
Habitat: Marine, demersal
Diet: Presumably marine invertebrates
IUCN Status (at time of posting): N/A [prehistoric]
Miscellaneous Notes: Anomalocaris canadensis belongs to a group of animals (Dinocaridida) whose phylogenetic placement is often fluctuating. They have always been aligned with the arthropods to some extent, whether within Arthropoda, proper, or outside of Arthropoda but within a larger Panarthropoda alongside groups like the tardigrades and onychophorans. The dinocarididans are currently placed within Arthropoda, but considered a stem-group and possible sister group to Euarthropoda, which contains more familiar animals such as insects, spiders, crustaceans, and myriapods.

[Halichoeres]

This is still my favorite Anomalocaris figure, despite the missing neck flaps.

[bmathison1972]

This is still my favorite Anomalocaris figure, despite the missing neck flaps.

Probably mine, too; the aesthetics more than make up for a couple minor morphological omissions.

[bmathison1972]

Species: †Dimetrodon grandis (Case, 1907)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Safari Ltd.
Series: Wild Safari Prehistoric World
Year of Production: 2018
Size/Scale: Body length approximately 18.0 cm for a scale of 1:17-1:25
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very common
Miscellaneous Notes: There is no shortage of Dimetrodon figures to chose from; other relatively recent good standard-sized renditions include those by Favorite (2015) and Papo (2013). Doug Watson, who sculpted today's Safari figure, indicated that it was based on D. grandis; perhaps one of the aforementioned figures by Papo or Favorite represents a different species? If so, it could be an opportunity for a 'synoptic species collector' to have more than one nice model of this genus :-).

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Early Permian of present-day central North America
Habitat: Open woodlands, scrubland, wetlands, river deltas
Diet: Apex predator of other animals, including sharks, amphibians, and other synapsids
IUCN Status (at time of posting): N/A [prehistoric]
Miscellaneous Notes: One of the most famous 'non-dinosaur dinosaurs', Dimetrodon has always been known for its elongated neural spines that formed a sail running down the animal's back. There have been several theories over the years on the function of these spines, including 1) camouflage among semi-aquatic plants, 2) stability to aid in movement, 3) thermoregulation, 4) territorial display, and 5) sexual selection.

[Halichoeres]

This is a great figure. I think the Favorite Co. version is a better match for D. limbatus, so I have both in my collection.

[bmathison1972]

Species: †Alphadon marshi Simpson, 1927

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Vivid Toy Group
Series: Walking with Dinosaurs
Year of Production: 2012
Size/Scale: Body length approximately 8.0 cm for a scale of 1:3.75 (see below).
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique
Miscellaneous Notes: Scale difficult to calculate as fossils of Alphadon are known only from mandibles and teeth, but based on a presumed body length of 30 cm, scale comes to 1:3.75

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Late Cretaceous (Campanian to Maastrichtian) of present-day Canada and northern USA
Habitat: Forests
Diet: Invertebrates, fruit; possibly small vertebrates or carrion
IUCN Status (at time of posting): N/A [prehistoric]
Miscellaneous Notes: The phylogenetic position of the Alphadontidae is not fully resolved, but it is generally believed they are metatherians that represent a sister-group to, or nestled within, Marsupialia.

[Newt]

Wow, I had no idea there was an Alphadon figure. Mesozoic mammal toys are scarce as hen's teeth!

[bmathison1972]

Wow, I had no idea there was an Alphadon figure. Mesozoic mammal toys are scarce as hen's teeth!

Check eBay periodically; they show up from time-to-time (that's where I got mine)

[Halichoeres]

Wow, I had no idea there was an Alphadon figure. Mesozoic mammal toys are scarce as hen's teeth!

I know of only five Mesozoic mammal toys, ever, not counting resin kits. I think that makes them somewhat rarer than hen's teeth, if we're willing to count ones created in gene knockdown experiments that weren't permitted to hatch.

[bmathison1972]

Species: †Edmontosaurus regalis Lambe, 1917

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Safari Ltd.
Series: Wild Safari Prehistoric World
Year of Production: 2020
Size/Scale: Body length approximately 27 cm for a scale of 1:33-1:45
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Uncommon to rare (depending on species designation)
Miscellaneous Notes: This model went to production before new theories arose on the structure of the front feet of Edmontosaurus. It's now believed the third digit had a defined nail-like structure (initially thought to be hoof-like but now believed to be structurally more like a nail than a hoof). CollectA attempted to capture this feature in their 2022 rendition of this species (although following the hoof theory) and promotional photos suggest Schleich's 2023 model will also show this feature. However, this structure has only been observed in one specimen so there is a question as to whether it's been properly identified.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) of present-day western North America
Habitat: Coastal wetlands, peat bogs, swamps, deltas
Diet: Plants, primarily conifer needles and cones, seeds, twigs
IUCN Status (at time of posting): N/A [prehistoric]
Miscellaneous Notes: Edmontosaurus regalis is known for its fleshy comb atop its head. The function of the comb is unknown, but it could be for sexual display, species recognition, or intimidating a rival. Soft tissue is rarely preserved well, so it is unknown if other species possessed this comb or if it was limited to only one of the sexes.